The Second Visit New-member retention · Steven Leka

We don't lose them at day 30. We lose them on the second visit.

Every new member gets a €50 welcome reward, paid out in four chunks, one per visit. Here's how far they get.

Signed up1,150  100%
1st visit · got €20557  48%
2nd visit · got €10258  22%
3rd visit · got €10218  19%
4th visit · got €10187  16%
Still coming at day 30132  11.5%
the cliffOf everyone who came once, only 46% come back for the second visit. Every step after holds in the 80s. That one step is the whole problem.
IN VENUE · 770
ONLINE · 380
1 in 3 join online, and the first reward needs a visit, so they have to show up before they can even start.
Coastline new-member data · Jan-Mar 2026 · 1,150 people · bars show share of all sign-ups
✓ WHAT'S WORKING

The venues do the work. 557 people showed up and claimed the first reward in person, more than ever even opened the welcome email (376). And once someone comes back once, they keep going: 84% reach visit three, 86% reach visit four.

✕ WHAT'S NOT

One welcome email is the only contact, and a third open it. It even carries 25 free Slotbox spins, but only 6% ever claim them. Then total silence, and only 46% of those who came once come back for the second visit.

WHY IT HAPPENS · MY READ

The next reward unlocks the very next day, and nobody tells them. My read is it's timing and silence, not lost interest. The cheap way to be sure is to test it, which is exactly what I'd do.

The Second Visit · 01 / 05
02The plan · first 30 days

Walk them through the first 30 days.

The full journey: Phase 1 gets them in (left), Phase 2 brings them back (right).

STEP 1 · GET THEM IN signed up online, not visited yet Signs up online DAY 0 · EMAIL €50 welcome offer + 25 Slotbox spins DAY 0 · TEXT Your €20 is waiting at the club DAY 2 · TEXT Map, opening hours, how to unlock it DAY 7 · EMAIL Last nudge, or play online on Slotbox Visited by day 14? NO Push the Slotbox spins else, mark dormant YES OUR IN-VENUE EDGE What an online rival can't copy: 9 clubs, real staff, screens on the floor. Screens, in all 9 clubs Greet them by name and show their next reward, on every single visit. Club managers The warm welcome at the desk, plus a personal nudge to anyone slipping away. Online brands can't. We can. STEP 2 · BRING THEM BACK in-venue members start here FIRST VISIT · claims €20 (Stage 1) ON THE SPOT · DESK + SCREEN + TEXT "Your next reward unlocks tomorrow" NEXT DAY · TEXT · THE SECOND VISIT Your €10 is ready (Stage 2) +2 DAYS · TEXT Your €10 is ready (Stage 3) +2 DAYS · TEXT Your €10 is ready (Stage 4) Day 21-30 · active → Retention
SAFETY CHECKEvery message passes first: consent · not self-excluded · allowed hours 05:30-21:00 · same offer for everyone · Belfast follows UK rules.
The Second Visit · 02 / 05
03The one text · second visit
Coastline SMS
Steven, your next €10 Free Play is ready and waiting at Empire. No deposit, it's yours just for coming back. Pop in today to claim it, and the reward after unlocks straight away. See you soon. 18+ · T&Cs apply · STOP to opt out
Sent the morning the next reward unlocks

The text that wins the second visit.

Sent the day after the first visit, aimed straight at the biggest leak: getting them back for visit two. Every line does a job:

  1. 1"Steven," by name. People act when they feel seen, not blasted. A retention lead's first rule.
  2. 2The exact reward, up front. "€10 Free Play, ready and waiting." Lead with the number; clarity drives the visit.
  3. 3"No deposit, just for coming back." We reward the thing we actually want, another visit, not another deposit. It keeps it about the habit, not the bonus.
  4. 4"The reward after unlocks straight away." Always tell them what's next. People come back when they know what's coming.
The Second Visit · 03 / 05
04How we'll know it worked

We'll know inside a quarter.

Three checkpoints tell the story: the first visit (does onboarding work), the second visit (the big leak), and still active at day 30 (did the habit stick). These two are the ones we'd move first.

Come back for the 2nd visit
46%65%
today → target by week 8
Still active at day 30
11.5%18%
today → target by week 8

The 18% isn't a guess. Silver Strand already runs at it on the same offer, so it's clearly reachable. To prove it's the texts and not the season, we hold back 10-15% of new members and send them nothing: that's our control group. It also settles the obvious doubt, whether these people were ever coming back anyway. If the texted group beats the control, the texts did it. First read at week 8, the full day-30 picture by the quarter. If they don't beat the control, we stop.

The Second Visit · 04 / 05

The second visit is the whole game.

This was never an acquisition problem. We're good at getting them in. It's what happens after. We've already paid for these people, so a euro spent bringing them back beats a euro chasing new ones. The ask: one group of new members, eight weeks, hold 15% back as a control. If the second visit doesn't beat that holdout, we kill it.

By

Steven Leka

The Second Visit · 05 / 05